BROKEN MIRROR Ep 5

 Episode 5.

I sat in front of the TV, catching up with my favorite show. My parents had just returned from one of the Saturday activities in church. They seemed to have been in an unresolved conversation before they got inside. It still surprises me, how i am able to remember  minutest details of events in the far past. 

"We have 2 options. It's either we get a maid or you quit your job" I heard my dad say emphatically.

I know my mother to be calm, while dad is aggressive and loud, but that conversation brought out a side of my mother that I had never seen before.

Women of my mother's generation were trained to take in everything their husband says, hook, line and sinker. They rarely have a say and many of this women die in silence, fighting a lot of battles at home, while putting out a smile to the world like all is well. 

"I've always listened to you without questioning, but on this job issue, I maintain my stand" my mother reiterated.

"Which leaves us with only one option. We get a maid and you pay for it. Look at most of my friends, their wives are full time house wives." My father said. Those words are still fresh in my head. He said a lot of things that I can't put together, but I could see the disappointment on my mother's face.

Pending the time they came to an agreement, i continued staying at our neighbour's place after school, but with more caution. Days rolled into weeks and after about a month and a half, they arrived at a decision.

My mother has a younger sister, aunty Labisi who got married early, because she couldn't further her education. She met a man who loved and married her at 21 years old. My mother on the other hand got married at 38 years.

They were not financially buoyant and she already had 3 kids at the time my own parents were getting married.  Bayonle who was already 17, Busayo 15 and Bukola 12 years.

My mother spoke to aunty Labisi her younger sister about helping her raise one of her children.That sounded like a very good offer for aunty Labisi as it would reduce her financial burden. Also, it would eliminate the risk of getting an unknown maid on the part of my parents.

After much deliberations, sister Busayo, aunty Labisi's second child, was released to come to our house. 

I quickly grew accustomed to aunty Busayo, because she was very fun to be with and always ready to help me with my assignments. She wasn't privileged to start school early and was way behind her peers, so my parents saw a need to send her back to school.

We started attending same school. We would leave home together in the morning and come back together. 

Despite my mother's busy schedule, she  did not allow aunty Busayo do the cooking. She only allowed her do the dishes and sweep.

Two years later, the events in our house took a different turn.

For good  or bad? 

Find out.